what you should Know
- It looks like Google is adding filter chips to Google Contacts.
- The filtering options are similar to those introduced in Gmail last year.
- For now, the new search feature appears to be part of an A/B test as it is not widely available.
Trying to find a specific contact in Google Contacts can be difficult, especially if you maintain a long list of people in your phone book, but new evidence suggests that Google may solve this situation in the future.
According to Android Police (opens in new tab), Google Contacts is getting an update that will include chip filters to help you sort through your contacts. The new feature appears to be rolling out as part of an A/B test, with only a handful of users currently seeing it.
When it becomes more widely available, you’ll be able to narrow your search by phone contacts, email contacts, or company. The third filter is useful if you want to search for someone whose name you don’t remember, but you know the company they work for.
You should be able to do the same with the phone and email contact filters. Chips appear below the search bar when you start searching for a specific contact.
If this sounds familiar, it’s because Google introduced the same search feature to Gmail on the web in 2020 that it did on Android phones last year. The contact chips are oval-shaped, similar to those in Gmail for Android and on the web. The same feature is also available in Google Drive.
However, Contacts has fewer chips than the mobile and web versions of Gmail. But it’s a safe bet that Google will add more filtering options once this is released to the public.
It remains unclear when this new feature will be widely available. Android Central has contacted Google and will update this article once we hear back.